Each week, NWPE brings its members a round-up of what’s happening in education. From big, eye-catching headlines to the stories most papers overlook, AAE finds the news our members really want to see. This week, Idaho has named their teacher of the year and it’s a member! Also, the ESSA deadline looms as teachers strike and DeVos urges educators to rethink schools.

NWPE Member Wins Idaho Teacher of the Year: AAE proudly congratulates Rebecca Mitchell on being named Idaho’s 2018 Teacher of the Year! Mitchell is a teacher at Vision Charter School in Caldwell, ID where she teaches English Language Arts, works as a student advisor, coaches tennis, and directs the school’s drama programs. She was chosen from a pool of 18,000 candidates to represent the state and says that she will use the honor to advocate for students pursuing higher education and discuss the role of standardized testing. As Idaho’s Teacher of the Year, she is a nominee for the National Teacher of the Year competition. Mitchell is a member of Northwest Professional Educators (NWPE), AAE’s regional chapter serving Idaho, Washington, and Oregon.

DeVos Urges Educators to “Rethink School”: Education Secretary started her “Rethink School” Tour this week. The move is part of an effort to highlight innovative teachers and new ideas in how schools and learning should be organized. She’s also criticized schools for being married to a system that is fundamentally the same as it has been for generations, saying that for many, the current system is “a mundane malaise that dampens dreams, dims horizons and denies futures.” Her words are getting mixed reactions from educators.

Teachers Strike in VT and PA: Teachers in Burlington, Vermont went on strike Thursday after a mediator failed to reach an agreement between the union and the school board. The school board believed that an agreement had been made at one point and that the school board had offered generous improvements in pay and health care, but that the union rejected them, choosing to strike, instead. They join teachers from Abington Heights in Pennsylvania, who started to strike on Tuesday after the union and board there failed to reach an agreement about pay and health care.